Shift Patterns over Perks

Attractive shift patterns and working hours will help tackle skills gaps

Recruitment and Retention

An article in the Financial Times highlights how some warehouses and distribution centres are investing in facilities such as football pitches, retail outlets, gyms and ice cream vans to attract workers.

It comes as data from trade association Logistics UK found that nearly half of employers in the industry are facing moderate or severe problems recruiting warehouse personnel.

Clearly pay is vital, and the physical environment makes a difference…but shift patterns and the management of shift work has a huge impact on recruitment and retention in warehouses, distribution centres and manufacturing operations (and is true for many other industries too).

Organisations offering a choice of shift patterns will find they can significantly expand the breadth and depth of their labour pool. They will also establish clear differentiation and a competitive advantage over employers that persist with outdated and inflexible shift work conditions.

Crucially they will be able to improve working conditions and job satisfaction, which supports productivity, reduces sickness absence and underpins employee retention.

Using shift patterns to reduce attrition and optimise your capacity lessens the financial and administrative impact of continuously having to back-fill in highly competitive labour markets.

Are flat shift patterns an issue?

Manufacturing facilities, warehouses and distribution centres often operate with flat shift patterns (including 4 on 4 off, 5 from 7, double days with fixed nights etc.) that a significant percentage of people cannot, or do not want, to work.

Failing to meet the demands of diverse demographics with your shift patterns obviously limits the potential talent pool from which to hire.

It also negatively impacts staff retention.

As the needs of employees naturally evolve over time, we frequently see attrition being driven by shift patterns which begin to conflict with their home lives.

Shift patterns that were once popular can quickly become a poor fit for shift workers whose lifestyles and work-life balance needs change, particularly as they move through different stages of life.

There are many individuals for which shift patterns including 4 on 4 off, 5 from 7 and other 12-hour shifts patterns are incompatible.

These can include:

– Working parents and carers who need flexibility around family commitments such as school drop off-pick up, medical appointments and holidays.

– People at different life-stages who might find 4 on 4 off and 12-hour shifts don’t fit with their aspirations or wellbeing. This may include individuals with certain conditions and those looking to transition towards retirement.

– Shift workers who are used to high levels of flexibility in other sectors such as retail and leisure.

– Those still in further education looking for more evening/night and weekend working opportunities, with increased hours outside of term time.

– New entrants to the working population who are potentially seeking more flexibility and control over their working hours than previous generations.

Businesses with flexible shift patterns and alternative working hours put themselves at a distinct advantage in the local labour market, something which is crucial in manufacturing, warehouses and distribution centres where skills shortages and proximity of competing employers can drive increased wages and staff turnover.

Shift Work Assessment

Optimising shift patterns and shift work delivers huge benefits…but complexity and competing priorities sees many organisations leave things as they are.

Our Shift Work Assessment is a streamlined process which quickly analyses all relevant operational and HR factors to give you a tailored plan for immediate improvement.

How do flat shift patterns impact people?

The flat supply of labour resource delivered by many shift patterns also leads to significant issues when demand fluctuates or spikes at certain times of the year…like Black Friday and Christmas.

Many manufacturers, warehouses and distribution centres will be subject to seasonal peaks as well as significant variances in demand across the day, week, month and year.

This often creates ‘crunch points’ when demand outstrips the capacity provided by core shift patterns and the organisation must deploy alternative mechanisms to meet target and comply with service level agreements.

These can create challenging working conditions that impact productivity, sickness absence, morale and contribute to attrition of full-time shift workers.

When flat shift patterns fail to provide adequate capacity, we’ll typically see…

– Increased overtime: Which can lead to long hours working, shift work fatigue, disruption to work-life balance and higher labour costs.

– Call-ins: Short notice requests for cover that can negatively impact shift workers’ home lives. Poorly managed requests and shift cancellations are often cited as a major source of shift worker dissatisfaction.

– Major recruitment drives ahead of peak: The training requirement and lower productivity level of temporary workers creates even more pressure and workload for those shift workers on permanent contracts.

– Frequent shift pattern changes: Whilst sometimes operationally necessary, changing shift patterns with short notice can be hugely disruptive to employees, particularly when it impacts caring commitments that are not easily altered (i.e. nursery places).

It can be a vicious circle. Inflexible shift patterns impact health and wellbeing, which increases sickness absence…which in turn compounds short-term and underlying capacity issues.

Businesses looking to address this aspect should consider a 360-degree approach that includes optimising shift patterns, shift work policy and how shift work is managed.

This may incorporate a sophisticated fatigue risk management system that spans diverse factors such as workload balance, in-shift task management and environmental factors.

It can also focus on providing shift workers with guidance and tools to help them manage the rigours of shift work and ensuring the workforce is engaged and helping shape solutions.

This not only helps reduce sickness absence and improve productivity, but also demonstrates a substantial and sustained focus on shift work health and wellbeing…something which is increasingly important to ESG strategies and being considered an ’employer of choice’ that can attract and retain the best talent.

Shift Work Health

The effects of shift work on physical and mental health are clear…so responsible employers need to provide shift workers with tailored support across sleep, nutrition, exercise and social issues.

optashift will help you deliver a programme that blends strategic, operational, practical and technical solutions that are designed in collaboration with your workforce.

Creativity in shift pattern design is key

In the FT article referenced earlier, trade body the UK Warehousing Association rightly highlights the challenge of driving improvement when warehouses and distribution centres are operating on such fine margins.

However, forward-thinking businesses are increasingly looking at optimising shift work to help address fundamental recruitment and retention challenges…without escalating costs.

This includes using shift pattern design to create suites of shift patterns that meet demand, improve productivity and are suited to different demographics and shift worker needs or preferences.

This can also open new efficiency and productivity gains which allow for increased investment in competitive base salaries and ensuring the working environment is attractive and supportive.

In optashift’s experience, the demand profiles within many warehouses, distribution centres and manufacturing sites have a complexity that actually enables significant creativity in shift pattern design.

To underpin creative shift pattern design you must focus on several areas…

– Demand Planning: Undertake detailed modelling to understand levels of predictability/volatility and your true requirement for labour (how much, when and what).

– Capacity modelling: Gain 100% clarity on how many hours your employees are truly productive.

– Governance: Understand what operational constraints there are, as this may rule out certain shift patterns.

– Employee engagement: Understand employee sentiment and preferences towards shift patterns and working hours.

Once you have mapped the variables that shape and influence shift pattern design, you will be able to explore options that balance the requirements of the business with the diverse needs and preferences of current and prospective employees.

Co-designing shift patterns in close collaboration with Trade Unions and the workforce will further boost this creative approach and ensure shift workers continue to influence and inform the shift pattern design process.

Shift Patterns

Finding shift patterns that balance the needs of your organisation and shift workers can be a slow and painful process.

optashift’s Shift Pattern Design service combines data science, expert insight and collaboration to create shift patterns that are fully optimised for your performance and people.

Why aren’t modern, flexible shift patterns more common?

For many warehouses, distribution centres and manufacturing operations, rapid growth and competing priorities mean that updating shift patterns is often seen as ‘too difficult’.

Even though the benefits of shift pattern design and optimising shift work often eclipse those generated by other initiatives and change programmes, it’s often seen as a complex and sensitive area that can go untouched for years.

In that time everything changes.

Demand changes. Processes and technologies change. Legislation and best practice changes.

Crucially shift worker preferences and expectations change.

It requires a focus on shift work continuous improvement so that resourcing models respond to dynamic operational requirements and balance this with the evolving needs of employees.

We’re working with many progressive businesses who understand the impact of shift patterns and shift work and have put continuous optimisation at the heart of their recruitment and retention strategy.

For these industry leaders it’s certainly ‘Patterns over Perks’.

If you’d like to know more about current best practice in shift pattern design and shift work optimisation then please speak to one of our experts.